The 4th Shinobi War: Team 8
by DoUPHearAction
Summary: During the war Team 8 receives a mission to locate and rescue two very important shinobi. Follow them during their mission as they recount many memories they have built together and attempt to complete the most important mission of their lives. I do not own the rights to any characters. Please Review
1. S Rank Mission: The Team Is Assembled

The sun had officially lowered behind the mountains leaving only a burning orange tint over the horizon, and while Hinata's former division was now settling after a long day of fighting in the war the kunoichi was now moving in a eight man cell with orders directly from the supreme leader of the allied forces: Locate and rescue Captain Yamato and Anko Mitarashi.

* * *

Earlier That Day

Hinata dodged the claws of a white Zetsu and with her byakugan focused, slammed a palm into its abdomen, sending it flying several yards back.

Another approached swiftly from behind but the kunoichi spun elegantly around its attack and thrust both of her hands into its side releasing a blast of chakra into her target, immediately killing him.

After mentally confirming her kills Hinata moved on to the next wave.

Not too far from her was her cousin, Neji who was surrounded by a group of Zetsu which all lunged simultaneously, a small smile appeared on Hinata's face.

"**8 Trigrams Rotation!**" Neji declared as he was engulfed in a spinning orb of chakra.

The Zetsu met the field with a violent crash and were launched away at incredible speeds.

The Hyuga cousins quickly found themselves standing side by side.

Before them, a new horde of Zetsu was charging, preparing to claw them alive as they had done to many shinobi already.

Instinctively, they both moved into a gentle fist stance, their palms tucked at their sides next to each other then together they shouted.

"**Eight trigrams Vacuum wall palm**!" Together, they thrust their palms forward releasing a wave of compressed chakra that plowed through the hoard.

"Are you okay lady Hinata?" Neji asked, surveying the battlefield intently.

Hinata nodded. "And you Neji nii-san?"

Hinata responded but before her question could be answered the familiar voice of Inoichi Yamanaka materialized inside her head as if his thoughts were her own.

_Hinata Hyuga you have been summoned for an S rank mission. You are to meet your team captain at the Forest border immediately for an official debriefing and departure. _

Just as soon as the voice appeared it vanished, leaving only Hinata's own thoughts.

Hinata looked up at her cousin. "It's an S rank mission," Hinata explained.

Neji smiled. "Then you should be going lady Hinata, I believe I can handle it here."

Hinata paused for a moment, "Be safe Neji."

She said and with that pivoted away from the front line and ran towards the border.

"You too...Hinata." Neji said quietly.

* * *

Hinata was the last member of the team to arrive and she was happy to see some of the most familiar faces she could have hoped for during this time, Kiba, Akamaru, and Shino Aburame.

"Ah, Hinata you too huh?" Kiba said with a confident grin. "It looks like team 8 is all here."

Akamaru, Kiba's giant canine companion let out a bark that reverberated within Hinata's chest cavity.

A familiar feeling that made Hinata think of more peaceful times.

Shino was silent as usual but the head nod that he gave signified to Hinata that he was in fact pleased to see her.

"Glad you have made it lady Hyuga!" Said a loud, lean, handsome man, from the stone village with dark spiky dark hair.

Hinata blushed at the fact that if the man was given blue eyes instead of green, whiskers and blonde hair he would look like an older Naruto. Kiba laughed at this as he scratched Akamaru behind the ears.

"I am Suroshiki Naifu, but you may call me Captain Suro and I am the leader for this mission, that to my understanding will turn the tide of this war, I am honored to lead you all."

Although the captain's voice boomed it was warm and encouraging and for a second Hinata almost forget they were in the midst of a war.

"Konoha ninja!" Suro boomed.

Hinata flinched while her teammates only glanced at their captain.

"At the beginning of this war, Yamato of the wood style and Anko Mitarashi were abducted.

Our mission is simple but it is dangerous. We are to locate them, remove them from the Akatsuki influence, and get them to the extraction point.

These shinobi are no ordinary prisoners of war they both are believed, by headquarters, to be extremely valuable pieces to the Akatsuki."

"How so?" Shino asked, monotone as usual.

Sure nodded and answered, "Autopsy reports on the white Zetsu show influence from Yamato's chakra, by removing him from the Akatsuki we will weaken if not completely halt the production of Zetsu. You all in the fifth division are aware of the non-stop fighting due to the sheer numbers of the Zetsu clones. If the 5th division fails the entire allied forces will be bombarded. On the other hand, if the Zetsu clones are completely eradicated... "

"The fifth division can spread its power to other divisions," Kiba answered.

_Neji_ Hinata thought.

He continued, "Likewise, Anko Mitarashi's chakra is registering all over the battlefield through the reanimated ninja, it is believed that her chakra is being used to assist in controlling the corpse."

"So this mission is based on hunches." another ninja said folding his arms.

On his back was a large scroll of cloth.

_The sealing team _Hinata thought to herself along with noting that he was also a Sunagakure ninja who preferred bandages over real clothes.

"We must trust HQ Hotai," Suro responded with a smile. Hotai exhaled then responded with a respectful nod.

"Hotai, you and Neku are from the sealing teams so your jobs are simple if we encounter any reanimated corpse you both know what to do," Suro said gesturing to another Suna ninja

. Neku was dressed traditionally as a Suna ninja and sported three scrolls aligned vertically along each thigh. Both Hotai and Neku nodded in confirmation.

Suro then turned to a brown-haired kunoichi.

"Ameno you are vital to the success of this mission, do you understand why?" Suro asked.

"Yes sir," Ameno answered.

"This is a rescue mission and I specialize in emergency healing."

Ameno wore a sleeveless white tunic under her flap jacket and her brown hair was pulled back into a ponytail. It took a moment but Hinata recognized her as the ninja from the chunnin exams from almost two years ago. Another Suna ninja.

"Correct!" Suro confirmed. He then looked at the only samurai in their party. Signifying his rank, the Samurai's helmet sported two horns signifying his high rank. "Yoshiteru your sole purpose is to add in our ability to fight and quickly defeat enemies," Suro explained. "Understood," Yoshiteru said through his mask. "As for you three..." Suro said, finally looking at Team 8.

"You don't have to spell it out, buddy." Kiba grinned, flashing his dog-like fangs.

"We are team Kurenai, the best tracking team in the Leaf."

Shino then spoke "The success of this mission is largely on our shoulders, why? Because without us, locating the targets may be impossible." Shino inserted.

Suro smiled. "It seems we all know what's at stake here, we have wasted enough time." As the wind blew the team dashed into the trees.


	2. Trackers Of The Leaf

As the retrieval team dashed through the forest Hinata watched as Shino released hundreds of winged kikaichu into the air which advanced northward, deeper into the woodland that the retrieval team was moving throughout. Kiba and Akamaru took point at the front of the platoon. Using his nose Kiba had provided an early lead on the direction of their targets although it had been no easy feat, even for an Inuzuka.

He complained that Anko's scent was faint for what it was worth and due to the fighting in the vicinity, the smell of blood, fire, and other humans proved to be a distraction. Together team 8 formed a triangle at the front of the platoon where they would be able to use their tracking abilities to their best capabilities. Directly behind the "tracking triangle" was the creator of the formation, Captain Suro. Although he had no true tracking abilities besides rudimentary sensory skills he was knowledgeable of the art.

behind the captain was Hotai, Neku, and Yoshiteru in their own, less structured, triangular formation with Ameno in the middle.

"This makes sense" Shino had said, "because their roles, assuming everything goes according to plan, are not necessary until we arrive at the Akatsuki hideout_." _

_I wonder if they think about it too..._ Hinata thought to herself. _When we first became team 8._

* * *

A 12 year old Hinata did not know how to feel. One part of her was sad that she was not selected to be on a team with Naruto Uzumaki, the other part of her, the part she wanted to lock away or at the very least reform, was happy because she didn't even know if she could function in his presence.

The day before she and two other members of her newly formed team were instructed to meet their sensei at training field 20, The largest of the training fields because it was practically attached to the mountains that surrounded Konoha.

Waking up so early was nothing new to the Hyuga heiress however she could tell her Inuzuka teammate was in an exceptionally bad mood although the small sleeping puppy on the top of his head did not seem to be bothered.

Standing with them in the open field where the field met the trees was Shino Aburame. Hinata had not noticed him much during their time in the academy and even now his silence rivaled her own. In front of the Trio was Kurenai Yuhi, the Jounin who had been appointed as sensei to the team.

"Good morning team 8," Kurenai said in a motherly tone. The jounin leaned toward her students and smiled. There was much life in her ruby-colored eyes, eyes Hinata thought were beautiful.

As she leaned Hinata caught the smell of soft floral perfumes. Kurenai may have been a Jounin of Konoha, a killer even, but she was a woman of immense beauty and elegance.

"I hope I didn't request you all up too early." She chuckled.

"Of course you did." Kiba groaned.

Kurenai smiled then placed a gentle hand on Kiba's shoulder, her red fingernail polish and ivory-colored skin contrasted dramatically against his charcoal-colored jacket. "Well get used to it." The warmth abandoned her in a flash and left behind the cold shinobi Hinata originally assumed she would be. Both Hinata and Kiba stiffened. Shino, at least externally, seemed undaunted.

"Lets cut right to the chase for Kiba then." Kurenai started.

"Today I will be accessing your abilities as tracker ninja with a rather simple task." Kurenai glared at her students, red eyes intense as a flame.

"The time is now 6:00, you have until 8:00 to find me somewhere in these mountains," Kurenai said gesturing behind her.

Akamaru opened an eye at this.

"Shouldn't you get a head start then," Kiba said rubbing a finger under his nose confidently as if to start it up.

Kurenai smiled. "I'm going to enjoy you," she said. Without warning, starting from her head, her form began to dissolve into a flurry of flower petals that drifted off into the open air. Hinata followed the event all the way down to the Jounin's feet where she was replaced by a kunai that had been jabbed into the ground. Attached to the kunai was an explosive tag that began to burn as soon as Kurenai had fully vanished. _I hadn't noticed...all this time,_ Hinata thought to herself as her eyes widened.

"Are you slow! Move" Kiba shouted as he and Shino had already jumped clear of the blast radius. Hinata was late to move but she gained her composure and flew into the air. The explosion had knocked her off balance while in the air but besides being slightly disoriented and surprised at the tactics of her jounin sensei, she was okay.

"What was that!" Kiba shouted into the forest along with Akamaru who let out a few aggravated barks.

"It was genjutsu, her specialty," Shino responded from behind the Inuzuka.

"I know what a genjutsu is, idiot!" Kiba snarled.

"So why ask?" Shino asked monotone.

Hinata pressed her fingers together nervously after balancing herself on her feet. "Y-you guys, w-we don't have m-much time." She said meekly.

"What!" Kiba asked moving closer to his Hyuga companion

"She said we don't have much time, and she is correct in her assessment," Shino responded.

Kiba balled his fist then breathed out his frustration. "Okay I will sniff her out in no time, Akamaru and I know these mountains like the back of our hand so just sit tight, the perfume she had on will make her that much easier to find." Akamaru barked as he pounced from Kiba's head and began sniffing the ground.

"Are you sure you can trust your nose? I ask because as a master of genjutsu Kurenai sensei specializes in tricking the sens-"

"Oh would you shut up!" Kiba snapped. "I tell you what, I'll go on ahead and you two can do what works best for you. When I find her I'll come back and get you." Before anyone could interject Kiba and Akamaru were moving through the woods, following the scent of Kurenai's Perfume.

Hinata and Shino sat in silence for a moment.

"You are shy, I can tell because you stutter nervously," Shino said plainly. Hinata began to redden as a response. He then faced her.

"Preferably, I would prefer not splitting up and I also would rather focus on the task at hand rather than arguing so your personality works," Shino said. "Judging by your eyes you are of the Hyuga clan correct?"

"Y-yes" Hinata responded.

"And you are capable of using the byakugan, yes?" Shino continued. Hinata nodded in response.

"I have not yet harvested winged kikaichu so unfortunately my parasitic insects are limited on searching ability unless directly placed on a target." Shino started. "What I am saying is, your byakugan should be able to find her."

"O-Okay," Hinata said before going through a list of hand signs before finally activating her byakugan. A few moments passed. Her eyes scanned the forest with clarity and depth that ordinary eyes could never hope for.

"I...I've found her," Hinata said before deactivating her byakugan and stumbling.

Hinata and Shino found Kurenai at a small shack where she sat at a bench drinking tea and reading a book. She looked up from her book and raised a brow.

"You are missing one...or two should I say."She said. "Don't you two even think of going to look for him. He has to learn" Kurenai said returning to her book.

Neither Hinata or Shino said anything. Hinata, tired from byakugan usage, leaned on the nearest tree and breathed. Even with knowing the location of their sensei it still took over an hour to arrive at her hiding spot.

The trio became accustomed to silence until Kiba and Akamaru finally burst into the clearing five minutes away from 8:00. The Inuzuka looked as if the elements had gotten the best of him.

Kiba growled at the sight of the rest of his team, especially Kurenai.

"You- you, you set traps, you laced your perfume throughout the whole forest, you.."

Kurenai vanished from her seat and appeared in front of Kiba. No genjutsu this time only the raw speed of a trained jounin. "I am Kurenai Yuhi, you are to address me as Kurenai sensei and I can promise you one thing if nothing else." Kurenai's voice was stern. "If you ever abandon your team in the field, you will find yourself dead."

Kurenai's words echoed and Kiba put his head down towards the ground. His pride was hurt. The Jounin placed a hand under his chin and lifted it to a reasonable level then walked to where she could address her whole team.

"The three of you are from very prestigious clans I'm sure you are all aware. When I first discovered I was going to become a jounin sensei I assumed I would be getting three genin with baseline abilities and I imagined myself making all three of them genjutsu masters." Kurenai said lightly.

"Ninja-like you, however, will always find themselves with very specific paths. In this team's case, tracking Ninja." She smiled. "My job is to help you all develop your skills as tracker ninja for the good of the village, is this understood."

"Yes ma'am" They all spoke at once.

"Good. before we go any further there are three rules a tracker ninja must abide by when in the field. Number 1. A tracker ninja is to work in unison with other tracker ninjas in their squad." Kurenai looked at Kiba who blushed and fought the urge to look away.

Kurenai then looked at Hinata "Number 2. A tracker ninja is to be fully aware of his or her capabilities on a mission."

"And number 3." Kurenai then looked at all three of her students "A tracker ninja is to never stop improving on their ability to track."


	3. Kurenai Yuhi

The village was quiet ever since most of the shinobi left for the war.

Kurenai stared at the flowers outside of her window seal then rubbed her stomach. Any day now she would be going into labor.

"I'm going to be a mom." She said to herself as her eyes were drawn to a picture of Asuma.

"You are going to be a dad, my love." She smiled faintly. Kurenai then looked at a picture of herself and her team when they were genin. "I can't wait for you to meet them." Kurenai laughed.

* * *

3 Years Ago

Hinata had been off all day today and after Kiba mentioned something about Naruto returning it made sense why.

F_or two in a half years, Hinata had been growing consistently and suddenly when Naruto comes back she is unfocused and distant. I will have to correct that later _Kurenai thought to herself as she watched her team fighting rogue cloud ninja from an elevated distance.

Earlier that day her team received a mission from the Hokage to retrieve a stolen scroll from Cloud ninja that crossed into the land of fire's border. There were three of them and although Kurenai sensed that all three ninjas were Jounin level in their own regards she also had faith in her team of chunin. _As long as they work together they will be fine_ Kurenai thought as she watched attentively.

Kiba and Akamaru were the first to attack. Kurenai watched as Kiba ran crouched to the ground and his dog moved swiftly parallel to him.

"**Fang over Fang**" He shouted and the duo began to spin rapidly in the direction of their three targets.

This was the usual strategy of team 8's chunin members. Kiba would break the ranks of their enemies and provide an opening for Hinata to engage them with the element of surprise on her side. During all the commotion Shino would simultaneously attack and surround all of their targets.

When Kiba crashed into the ground all three ninja split, as planned. Hinata appeared behind the only female enemy who had long red hair tied back into a tight ponytail. Something was wrong tho.

Kurenai watched Hinata hesitate and that was all that was necessary for the kunoichi to maneuver around the Hyuga and move her into the path of Inuzuka duo's next attack. Instinctively Kiba and Akamaru halted with a skid.

As he was about to spit out an insult the largest member of their enemies appeared in front of Hinata and the duo.

Before they could properly react the shinobi clasped his hands and shouted "**Thunderclap jutsu!**" White light emitted from his hands followed by a loud boom that sent Hinata, Kiba, and Akamaru flying past Shino who did not flinch at the attack on his teammates.

Instead, Shino placed both hands out and from his sleeves, a swarm of insects ejected towards their targets in a wide arch.

The third member, a slender shinobi with short hair and bright orange eyes jumped in front of his comrades and began flying through hand seals.

"**Storm release: Thunder cloud inner wave**." A wave of dark, electrically charged clouds surrounded the Kumo shinobi then billowed outwards through the swarm of beetles. Covering both Shino and his parasitic insects.

Kurenai watched as all of the beetles and then Shino collapsed on the floor. Kurenai grimaced. With all of there chunin unconscious the rogue shinobi took off into the trees. Kurenai jumped from her hiding spot to check on her students.

"K-Kurenai sensei...I'm sorry." Hinata groaned.

"We will discuss it later," Kurenai responded. "I have something to tend to right now." With chakra gathered at her feet, Kurenai dashed off in pursuit of her targets.

In a matter of minutes, she caught up to the jounin who did not seem to notice her stalking behind them through the dimly lit forest.

_This should do it_, She thought as her hands created several hand seals. She inhaled and then released, "**_Fire Style: Fire Ball jutsu_**_._"

From her mouth, a large ball of fire flew out towards the rogue ninja. Sensing the attack the slender ninja turned mid-air and formed a hand single sign. "**Lightning Style: Lightning bear jutsu.**"

His body became charged with yellow electricity then the lightning moved from his body in the shape of a giant bear that collided with the fireball.

The two jutsu struggled against each other for a brief moment before they both exploded in black smoke.

From the smoke, Kurenai burst through, a kunai in hand. As her feet made contact with a platform-like branch she was jabbed hard in the stomach by the long-haired kunoichi.

With no air in her lungs, Kurenai was then elbowed in the back of the head which caused her to fall to her knees.

Before she could collapse completely the kunoichi grabbed a hand full of Kurenai's ebony-colored hair to keep her upright.

"Good job sneaking up on us Konoha bitch." The kunoichi said before placing a kunai next to Kurenai's throat.

"You should have stayed hidden!" With that, the rogue ninja dragged her kunai across Kurenai's throat then let her fall face-first on the tree branch.

"Good job Nanami." The larger ninja said with a grin. The slender shinobi groaned.

"Not a good job Arashi!" The slender ninja slapped Arashi in the back of the head.

"By killing a ninja from Konoha you have just made us wanted ninja in both the land of lightning and now the land of fire!"

"Sorry Kumomaru," Arashi said before looking up at Nanami for her to apologize as well.

When he looked at his comrade his mouth dropped and his eyes grew in horror.

Where Kurenai's body laid was now Nanami, lifeless, and Nanami was now Kurenai Yuhi, Konoha's Mistress of Genjutsu.

"Shit!" Kumomaru exclaimed before he and Arashi charged at Kurenai. Kurenai readied a kunai and the ninja engaged in combat, jumping from one tree branch to the next.

Kumomaru unsheathed a long and narrow sword which Kurenai danced around agilely and clashed with when her speed would fail her.

After jumping to a new branch she was met by Arashi, who despite his size was rather agile himself.

He balled his fist which glowed white then punched Kurenai in her shoulder.

with a boom, the leaf ninja was launched to a new tree and skid across the length of a branch until she was forced to use a kunai to create resistance and slow herself down.

Kurenai finally stood upright and began to move through hand signs when Kumomaru appeared behind her, a menacing smile on his face.

"**Cloud Style: Crescent Moon Beheading**."

The ninja's sword was carried through the air in a crescent shape and Kurenai's head was separated from her body.

In the air, Kurenai's dismembered form faded and revealed itself to be the head of Nanami. Kumomaru looked toward Arashi and saw that the ninja was nearly cut in half. A cut that could only be achieved with a sword. Kumomaru dropped his weapon, fell to his knees and began to cry.

"This can't be real!" Kumomaru sobbed.

"But it is." Kurenai's voice sounded from all around him. He stood to his feet.

"Where are you!" Kumomaru screamed frantically, throwing a kunai blindly into the bushes.

"Everywhere." Kurenai's voice echoed, continuously repeating the word throughout the forest.

"Shut Up!" Kumomaro screamed as he grabbed a kunai and jabbed it into the palm of his hand. Suddenly the forest grew silent again.

"It will take more than that to end my genjutsu," Kurenai said coldly, now standing directly behind the rogue ninja. he spun around on his heel prepared to stab Kurenai but he stopped himself once he felt a foreign sensation.

He looked at his hand that wielded his kunai to find it covered in salmon-colored flower petals.

The petals crept up the length of his arm and onto his chest.

The rogue ninja could not stop the panic from overtaking him.

The petals soon covered his entire form.

"Dissolve," Kurenai commanded.

With that, a breeze swept through and the petals were carried into the wind leaving behind no trace of the rogue ninja.

In reality, outside of the Kumo ninja's mind, Kurenai kneeled down and removed the stolen scroll from Kumomaru's sleeve.

Unlike his partners, he did not die but the trauma from Kurenai's genjutsu had knocked him out for an indefinite amount of time.

As they headed back to Konoha the rogue ninja was laid across the back of Akamaru while the rest of team 8 walked along a long road.

Hinata was in the back of the group, both hands held in front of her and her head held down in shame.

Kurenai looked back at Hinata and smiled. She slowed her pace until she was walking side by side to an unsuspecting Hyuga.

"You know." She started, pulling Hinata out of her thoughts.

"I've always wanted to sneak up on a Hyuga." Kurenai joked and looked Hinata in the eyes.

"Kurenai sensei..."

"If we are, to be honest, you did not perform very well today, I'm sure you are aware of that"

"Yes, I'm sorry, I messed up the formation," Hinata admitted.

"A formation I have seen you execute hundreds of times without fail...why today?" Kurenai probed.

Hinata began to redden and she broke eye contact with Kurenai. The jounin let out a slight chuckle.

"Hinata, for two years you have been on a steady climb, you have nearly mastered gentle fist and you have even increased the range of your byakugan by how much?" Kurenai urged

"10 kilometers," Hinata answered bashfully.

Kurenai nodded "Hinata I watch you grow every day and I could not be more proud of you." Kurenai said gently. Hinata fought back a smile.

"Now there is one more area for you to begin improving on," Kurenai said girlishly.

Hinata, sensing the direction of the conversation, began to turn red again.

"You need to master your feelings for Naruto," Kurenai said. Hinata became so red Kurenai worried she would pass out.

"Do you understand," Kurenai asked, adding authority in her voice.

"Y-yes Kurenai sensei." Hinata shot back in a gentle tone and looked at Kurenai.

Hinata's eyes narrowed at Kurenai's shoulder where she spotted a small beetle that took off and flew up ahead towards Kiba and Shino.

"Oh no." Hinata groaned as she covered her face with both hands.

Hinata watched through her fingers as the beetle landed on Shino's finger.

Shino turned to Kiba and the two exchanged a few words.

Shino was calm and his body language hard to read but Kiba practically fell over with laughter.

"You going to perfect your Naruto-kun jutsu huh Hinata!" Kiba shouted behind him clearly amused.

"N-not so loud Kiba!" Hinata whined.

Hinata groaned and Kurenai chuckled in response to the antics of her team. Kurenai placed a supportive hand on Hinata's shoulder. _She sure is_ Kurenai thought.

* * *

Kurenai Laughed... "Yes. I can't wait for you to meet them.

* * *

"Captain Suro, I have identified a clear scent on Anko sensei!" Kiba said as the unit moved through the trees.

"Smells pretty far though." He continued and Akamaru let out a low bark in agreeance.

Suro nodded. "Shino, send your beetles ahead to get a more accurate location, meanwhile, we have been traveling for over 12 hours. Hinata, use your byakugan to make sure the area is safe and we will set up camp."

With that, the platoon began to settle for the night.

The unit came to a halt and within the hour camp was set. "We will be the wave that changes the tide of this war," Suro said confidently.


	4. Brotherhood

The camp had settled in for the night and while most of the unit was asleep inside of tents Kiba, Akamaru, Shino, and captain Suro sat around a fire. The Inuzuka duo was on lookout duty while Shino communicated with several of his beetles that crawled around aimlessly in his palm.

"The hideout has been located," Shino said plainly. Both Suro and Kiba's faces lit up at the news.

"It is over 60 kilometers from our current location...according to my beetles both Anko and Yamato are present. Their chakras are both low activity, how do I know? My bugs can sense chakra levels in an individual." Shino explained.

"This is good news!" Suro gleamed.

"Furthermore." Shino began as a new bug, the size of grape flew into their vicinity. Kiba eyed the bug and smiled. "Kiba you are familiar with my friend here correct."

Akamaru released a low bark and Kiba smirked. "Captain Suro this is probably my favorite bug of Shino's... the farting bug."

Shino jerked visibly. "Scent mimicking kikaichu." he groaned in annoyance.

"Yeah whatever you call it." Kiba waved. "Anyways this bug copies the scent of the target after making contact.

"I commanded her to leave the scent at multiple points that will map our way directly to the hideout, all Kiba and Akamaru have to do now is follow the scent there," Shino explained.

Captain Suro balled his fist passionately. "I must say while your tracking abilities are impressive you all work extremely well together."

"Kurenai wouldn't have it any other way" Kiba bragged. Shino nodded in agreement.

"However..." Kiba started with a sly smile. "Do you remember when you didn't talk to me for a month?" Shino stared at Kiba with what seemed to be an expressionless face.

Suro laughed "Really I couldn't imagine two as close as you not talking for so long."

* * *

It had been about a month since the Sasuke retrieval mission failure and it had also been a month since Shino said a word to Kiba.

In the heat of the morning sun, team 8 just finished one of their tracking drills with Kurenai and were all sitting in their respective spaces on the field. Kiba and Akamaru dropped in front of Shino and sat in silence, staring at the insect user. Moments passed and there was no exchange of words.

"You can't be serious!" Kiba finally groaned. Shino looked at the Inuzuka, Kiba's reflection manifesting in his shades and then wordlessly looked away.

"Ugh!" Kiba groaned. "I'll tell you what," Kiba said standing to his feet in front of his teammate.

"I challenge you to a sparring match. If I win you have to forgive me for something I had no control over. If I lose you don't have to talk to me until we become chunin." Kiba held his had out and waited for confirmation. Akamaru whined.

Moments passed but finally, Shino shook Kiba's hand.

The boys stood and walked to their places.

"This should be interesting don't you think?" Kurenai asked Hinata who held a sleeping Akamaru in her lap.

"I-I just hope they don't hurt each other," Hinata responded meekly.

Kiba and Shino stood several paces away from each other when Kurenai's voice signaled for them to begin. With a burst of chakra, Kiba filled the gap between them using his shoulder to ram into Shino who could not react fast enough. After tumbling, Shino rolled to his feet then charged at Kiba.

"It seems that Shino isn't using his insects," Kurenai said with her hand under her chin as she watched her genin students spar.

"Isn't Shino weak in taijutsu... do you think he intends to lose?" a concerned Hinata asked, looking up towards her sensei.

Shino launched a series of punches, all of which Kiba blocked with ease. After a block, he jumped upward and kicked both of his feet into Shino's chest which sent the Aburame rolling.

"I doubt that very seriously," Kurenai answered. "I wager that he wants to prove himself capable as a warrior," Kurenai said watching Shino stand to his feet and charge Kiba once again.

"Save for Shikamaru, everyone who went on the Sasuke retrieval mission specialized in close quarters combat...Shino wants to show Kiba he is capable." Kurenai theorized.

"Shino..."Hinata said under her breath. Impressed with her teammate's resolve.

Kiba ducked under a punch from his teammate then aimed a jab at Shino's midsection. To his surprise, Shino blocked the hit by bringing up his knee, grabbed Kiba's collar with his left hand and with his right landing a well-placed punch to the side of Kiba's face. Both boys then jumped away from each other.

"Damn that was a good punch," Kiba said with a smile as he rubbed his jaw. "That guard wasn't half bad either." Kiba lowered himself to all fours.

"Good, then we can call this match over," Shino responded. Kiba's mouth fell open.

"What no one has won yet!" He exclaimed looking at the direction of Kurenai who shrugged her shoulders.

"Does it matter, we are talking now," Shino replied, dusting himself off.

"So...I won?" Kiba asked genuinely, tilting his head.

"No," Shino answered.

"Dude!" Kiba complained. Hinata chuckled and Akamaru barked cheerfully.

"So you are just going to quit like that," Kiba cried.

"I got what I wanted," Shino stated as he walked past Kiba.

* * *

Kiba stared into the flame amused. "To this day I don't know if Shino wanted to prove himself to me in taijutsu or if he just wanted to get a good hit in on me for going on that mission without him."

Shino looked at him and a small smirk grew on his face. "Maybe you will find out one day," Shino answered.

"What does that even mean!" Kiba snapped.

Captain Suro laughed at the two. They were truly brothers.


	5. Infiltration

Using her byakugan Hinata could see the entire scope of the Akatsuki hideout. It was massive. An elaborate array of corridors carved deep into the mountain that was surrounded by the skeletons of giant creatures Hinata assumed perished long before she was born. Crouched beside her, at a safe distance of 10 kilometers, were her teammates as well as members of her unit. Before setting base at the foot of the mountain captain Suro was sure to make sure no traps or enemies were in the immediate vicinity.

"Do you see the targets?" Captain Suro asked. Hinata focused, sending more chakra to her byakugan to penetrate deep into the ruins. Her vision zooming and curving through corridors and rooms. Moments passed.

"Yes both Anko and Yamato are present although they are both in different locations within the hideout," Hinata responded. "I'm only picking up on one enemy as well. Kabuto, but he seems inattentive ." Hinata said.

Captain Suro thought to himself for a moment. "We are not to engage in any unnecessary battle. We are to get in and get out with our targets. Is this understood!" His voice was much more serious than it had been for the past day.

"YesSir!" The squad responded in unison.

"Hinata and Shino, use your abilities to find us a clear path inside; I don't want to let the enemy on to our presence if we don't have to," Suro commanded. "Once we enter we will split. Team A, consisting of Shino, Kiba, Yo, and Hotai will retrieve Yamato. Team B will consist of myself, Hinata, Ameno, and Neku, we will retrieve Anko."

"We have found a safe entry point on the east side at the base of the mountain," Shino said as several bugs crawled back into his coat.

"Move out." Captain Suro said and all 8 shinobi began towards the mountain.

Once inside the teams immediately split up, with the help of their individual tacking ninja leading the charge. Hinata led her team into a large cavern with little lighting when Anko became visible to the naked eye. Ameno rushed ahead to Anko's side.

"She's unconscious...she seems to be sedated...and she also has a concussion." Ameno recited after a brief examination of the leaf ninja. Captain Suro nodded at Neku who unraveled a scroll from his left hip.

"**Summoning: Black Spider**" In a puff of smoke a large puppet roughly the size of a carriage appeared. True to its name the puppet was similar in appearance to a spider with four legs rather than 8. While its head was rather small and insignificant to its structure compared to its abdomen. Neku flexed his hand, attaching chakra threads to his puppet then the abdomen swung open in two parts. As if by instinct, Ameno lifted Anko with a level of carefulness only a medical ninja could have and lowered her into Black Spider.

"Hinata what is the progress on team B?" Suro asked.

Hinata reactivated her byakugan and immediately located her teammates headed back towards the entry point with Yamato hung over the back of Akamaru. "They are headed out now," Hinata answered. "They have captain Yamato."

"Great we will converge with them." Captain Suro responded. As he turned he came to a hard halt.

"Leaving so soon?" Asked as a shrouded figure. He lifted his head to show snake-like eyes and pale skin.

"H-How did he sneak up on us," Hinata whispered to herself settling into a gentle fist stance behind Captain Suro.

"Kabuto." Captain Suro spat.


	6. Captain Suro

Authors Note: Hello, I hope everyone is enjoying the story If you find the time please leave a comment. This is the long chapter I have written and also you may see some jutsu that exist in the series so have your wiki's open lol. Enjoy.

* * *

"How, How did you manage to avoid my byakugan?" Hinata asked. Kabuto chuckled.

"You Hyuga, too much pride in your eyes." Kabuto looked directly at Hinata. "Look closer." He hissed. After straining Hinata could see that the entire mountain had been infused with chakra. They were inside of one large chakra system.

"Everything you saw was because I wanted you to see." Kabuto taunted as four large snakes slowly revealed themselves from under his cloak. "I need more bodies!" Kabuto menaced.

"Everyone stay behind me" Suro commanded. With lightning speed, the snakes launched at the team. As fast as the snakes were moving a wall of black flames erected itself as a protective barrier around them instantly incinerating the reptiles. Hinata's vision flushed and her mouth hung open. Standing behind them was Sasuke Uchiha and his brother Itachi.

"S-Sasuke.."Hinata breathed. Sasuke walked past the stunned Hyuga, seemingly not paying her any attention.

"You all should be going, we will handle this," Sasuke said coldly.

"He is right." Captain Suro said and they all proceeded to leave.

"G-Good luck Sasuke-Kun," Hinata said as she followed her team out. Sasuke stared at Kabuto intently, ignoring the courtesy of the Hyuga.

The two teams converged in the main hallway and ran out into the sunlight, entering a large, pale courtyard that hosted the fossils of several large animals.

"The rendezvous point is 15 kilometers from here team we will make it!" Captain Suro proclaimed.

As they were nearing the entrance to the forest Hinata's expression dropped.

"Everyone watch out!" She shouted as a shinobi with Arms larger than his body propelled himself from a coffin. The unit all jumped out of the way of the collision.

"We're surrounded," Hinata warned. As four more coffins appeared behind the team revealing 4 animated corpses.

Captain Suro looked back at his team.

"Listen to me carefully." He began. "Our mission is to get Anko and Yamato to safety and away from the Akatsuki." Hinata peered inside of black spider where Ameno was inside performing medical treatment on both unconscious shinobi. "I am going to create an opening and I want you all to escape. I will hold them off." Captain Suro said confidently.

"I will accompany you," Yoshiteru said unsheathing his sword.

Hotai grunted through his bandages. "Count me in as well! You will need someone to seal these bastards."

Captain Suro smiled. "Does everyone understand the mission!"

"Yes, sir." They all said.

The Edo tensai all charged at the shinobi when Captain Suro began a chain of hand signs.

"**Earth Style: Mud Wall,**" He said after slamming both his hands on the ground. Suddenly a multitude of walls with the Rock village symbol etched into them erected from the ground, encasing three of the reanimated ninja in a dome. "**Mud Prison,"** Suro said to himself. The large armed shinobi appeared in front of Suro with unbelievable speed and launched a punch. Suro counted the punch with his an earth-covered jab and the two attacks stalemated.

"Go!" Captain Suro shouted. Hinata, Kiba, Shino, and Neku all took to the trees with Black Spider being controlled by the puppet master.

For the split second, Suro and the animated shinobi struggled against each other Yoshiteru appeared in the space between the two shinobi.

**"Iaido," **Yoshiteru said as he swung the sword upward, immediately severing the oversized arm of the shinobi. From his swords high point he dragged it down diagonally, cleanly slicing the shinobi in two. While the enemy laid on the ground Hotai moved quickly and the bandages on his arm came alive to wrap around the reanimated shinobi.

"Sealing process complete." He declared once the shinobi was completely encased.

Suro exhaled. "Four more." His attention was immediately drawn to a green-haired shinobi standing to their far-right.

"**Dragon release: Judgement," ** The shinobi said with a hand extended. Suddenly a blue flame was released from his palm.

**"Earth Style: Mud Wall," **Suro said, creating a large wall in front of himself and his teammates. The blast hit the barrier and dissipated, leaving multiple cracks in the structure. Yoshiteru dashed from the side of the wall aiming the point of his sword at the reanimated ninja.

**"Iaido: Bullet" **In a flash, the chakra covering Yoshiteru's sword extended several meters until it pierced through the Edo Tensei's chest.

"**Mud Wall Collision," **Suro said as he erected two spiked slabs of the earth on each side of the pierced shinobi. As if they were shogi pieces moving across a board, the walls glided over the land until they both crashed into the shinobi. Through the rubble, Hotai released bandages that sealed the mutilated ninja.

"And now for our trapped enemies," Suro said glancing at the dome of earth which contained three reanimated shinobi. He began to perform several hand signs when something at his feet caught his attention. Green smoke was creating cracks in the pavement that he and his teammates stood at.

"Everyone move!" Suro shouted alarm filled his voice. An explosion of green smoke shot into the air.

Suro and Yo slid defensively away from the explosion.

"Where is Hotai?" Suro asked, peering through the dissipating smoke.

Several meters away he spotted the sealing ninja and quickly noticed a large portion of his left leg was gone. Seemingly burned away. Hotai screamed in horror.

"Shit!" Suro hissed as he and Yoshiteru rushed to their companion. As they were nearing three shinobi emerged from the hole that had been created from the explosion.

"They escaped my mud prison." Suro mused, eyeing the reanimated shinobi.

_Now that I have a better look, I know of these shinobi_ Suro thought to himself.

"The ninja who caused the explosion is Tokeru of the mist village, mixing wind, water, and fire chakra natures he specializes in acid-based jutsu," Suro explained looking at a tall, slender shinobi with purple hair, purple eyes, and extremely baggy Kirigakure clothing. Emerging from Tokeru's left was a rather attractive kunoichi with jet black, free-flowing ankle-length hair. Suro grimaced.

"She is from the village hidden in the stone, Kiko Yatsume, the mistress of hair based ninjutsu," Suro said painfully. His eyes then drifted to the last shinobi.

Similar to the first shinobi they faced he was larger but with multiple tattoos spanning over dark skin. "Yoroi of the lightning village," Suro said. "Not nearly as fast as the Raikage but his chakra cloak grants him great durability.

"We have to immobilize them quickly," Suro said, keeping an eye on Hotai who was about to lose consciousness.

"**Earth style: Mobile core," **Suro said as a pillar of earth lifted Hotai into the air behind the reanimated shinobi.

With alarming speed, Yoshiteru swung his sword horizontally sending out a slash of sharpened chakra. Yoroi stepped forward and his tattoos flashed white, creating a thick shield of chakra around his skin.

The slash collided with his chakra covered hands and after making Yoroi slide back a few inches the attack faded. Before Yoroi could begin his counter attack he was dragged under the earth by his ankle.

From the ground, Suro appeared. As he emerged a tendril of hair pierced Suro in the gut. The attack came from Kiko whose hair had turned itself into a large, flexible spike. Suro's form suddenly began to break apart in large chunks of rock.

"A rock clone," Kiko said matter of factly. High above the animated shinobi on the platform created for Hotai, stood Suro who had his hands pressed together.

**"Mud Release: Mud Slide" **From above mud erupted from Suro's feet and collapsed onto the Edo tensai ninja, completely covering them. Suro continued his attack.

"**Fire Style: Fire Dragon Flame Bullet." **From his mouth, a dragon-shaped blast of fire covered the pit of mud immediately turning it into hard concrete. Suro fell to his knee next to Hotai.

"Y-you are amazing, captain," Hotai said, barely conscious.

"Thank you," Suro breathed "I can perform earth and mud style jutsu all day, but fire takes a lot out of me. Now let's get you some medical attention," Suro said compassionately. As he was beginning to pick Hotai up he took notice of a shadow manifesting itself above him.

"**Armor style: Meteor!"** Before Suro could react, Yoroi crashed into the pillar falling straight through to the ground. Yoshiteru watched in horror as the structure fell and debris was launched upward into the air.

"Captain! Hotai!" He exclaimed, readying his sword for an attack. from the debris three tendrils of spiked hair honed in on him with wild trajectory. He managed to sidestep two of the tendrils while also slicing the sharpened ends however he was not able to avoid the third that consequently penetrated him in the chest. After murdering their target the tendrils retracted back to their owner who had been freed from her concrete prison.

Suro tried to open his eyes and realized his right eye had either been swollen shut or damaged permanently from the attack. His foot was turned in an awkward position and several of his ribs had been cracked.

_Yoroi must have been able to free himself before I could effectively capture them all, how stupid of me!_ Suro though to himself as the dust cleared. He scanned the area until he found the three animated ninjas standing menacingly in front of him with Hotai, dead at their feet. Angered, Suro began a line of hand seals.

"**Earth sty.." **Before he could complete the jutsu Yoroi appeared in front of him and launched a chakra cloaked fist into Suro's stomach, sending him flying into a slab of his shattered earth pillar. Pained and weakened, Suro could only watch as a cloud of acid rushed towards him.

* * *

Several miles away Hinata, at the back of her party, covered her mouth in shock as she had watched the battle take place.

Kiba looked back at Hinata, knowing what she had seen and grunted while Akamaru let out a high pitched whine.

Inside of black spider at the front of the new formation, Ameno was working diligently on Anko and Yamato. The inside of Black spider was spacious and had enough lighting for the medical ninja to work effectively.

She pulled out two brown sacs from her medical bag and placed them both on central areas of both the Konoha ninjas' chest.

"**Medical Water Release: Jellyfish"** The sacs became transparent and small water veins attached themselves at random points on both victims' bodies.

"Don't want neither of you dying from chakra depletion," Ameno said to herself before examining the bit marks on Anko's neck.

"I need to remove the poison," Ameno said before performing several hand signs.

"**Medical Water Release: Water Mosquito" **There was a slight hum in the air accompanied by the formation of very small mosquito shaped droplets of water. The swarm of water mosquitoes latched themselves onto Anko at various points and stuck their stingers into her. Ameno then performed the tiger hand seal.

"Begin extraction." Suddenly the mosquitoes began to fill themselves with the poison that was coursing through Anko's blood.

"This will hold you until we can get you better treatment." She said aloud as her water mosquitoes absorbed as much poison as they could. She then collected the poison in a jar.

"At this speed, they are going to catch up to us soon," Hinata said meekly as she jumped from a tree branch.

"I am sorry but Black Spider is a larger puppet and Ameno needs operating space," Neku said regrettably. Black spider was, in fact, a large puppet but the sand ninja manipulated it well enough that it seemed to be moving among the trees fluidly, on its own accord.

Kiba gritted his teeth then abruptly came to a stop on one of the branches. After seeing this the rest of the platoon did the same. The Inuzuka stood upright and looked at his teammates.

"Listen, there are 12 more kilometers till the rescue point but like Hinata said we will never make it there before those zombies catch up to us," Kiba said staring off into the distance.

"What do you suppose we do Kiba," Shino asked calmly. Kiba thought for a moment.

"I will hold them off... me and Akamaru," Kiba said rubbing patting Akamaru who let out an aggressive and low growl.

"What!" Neku exclaimed.

"Kiba-Kun" Hinata spoke up. "Captain Suro was slaughtered by them. I...I believe the only way we can hold them off, is if we, team 8, work together." Shino nodded in agreement.

"Remember the lessons Kurenai sensei taught us," Shino said. "Plus I would rather not be left behind again," Shino said plainly. Kiba breathed in frustration.

"Listen Neku, you have to get Anko and Yamato sensei to the rendezvous point. We are going to give you as much time as we possibly can. Got it?" Kiba asked. Neku looked at team 8 for a moment.

"I promise I won't fail you all." He responded before he jumped off with Black Spider and its occupants.

As Neku vanished from sight Kiba turned to his team "So...How are we going to survive this one?"


	7. The Battle Begins

The tranquility of the forest was disrupted as Yoroi, Kiko, and Tokeru raced through the thicket at an alarming speed in pursuit of their targets.

"It feels amazing to be alive again," Kiko said, her dark eyes gleaming with bliss and blood lust.

"Are you not concerned with how we were brought back tho? something about this is... unnatural" Yoroi said a more solemn look adorned his face.

Tokeru remained silent as he led the way for his reanimated peers. The mist ninja landed on a tree branch and as he prepared to propel himself he noticed a glowing explosion tag under his foot. As if awakened from a dream he suddenly became aware of the multitude of tags that had been strategically scattered around their entire parameter.

"Bomb!" His hoarse voice hissed, as he jumped back towards Kiko. the stone kunoichi's hair came alive with movement as a lock wrapped around Tokeru's waist and pulled him closer followed by the rest of her hair beginning to form a protective sphere around the two of them. Behind them, Yoroi's tattoos flashed and a dense chakra erected from his skin. At that same moment, the forest was engulfed in light.

* * *

Dark smoke blasted into the air and a large, singed, patch of the earth remained where trees once stood.

On the ground, Kiko's tightly knit orb of hair unraveled itself to show both her and Tokeru, the latter of which was missing a large portion of his upper left body. Due to the effects of the reanimation jutsu, his figure was already beginning to repair itself. Yoroi emerged from under the rubble and walked over to his undead partners, seemingly unscathed thanks to his now deactivated chakra armor.

"Sneaky bastards laid traps." Yoroi groaned.

Before anyone could reply the three reanimated shinobi darted in their respective directions to avoid two spinning drills that barely missed and crashed into the earth. From the impact site, Kiba and Akamaru dashed towards Yoroi. The trio engaged in a battle of taijutsu as they moved into a wooded section of the remaining forest.

"Don't split up!" Kiko shouted but was caught off guard by Hinata who appeared above her with her palm extended. Instinctively Kiko's hair formed a shield that intercepted the attack. Before Hinata could counter, a separate cluster of hair was preparing to ram into the Hyuga's side.

Hinata blocked the attack with her forearms and was launched several meters in the opposite direction of Kiba to the east. Before she collided with a tree Hinata released chakra from her back to lighten the blow. She didn't have much time to rest as her Byakugan took notice of a sharp tendril of hair rushed toward her. Hinata gracefully moved around the spike that pierced the tree in Hinata's stead.

She ran, evading multiple strikes of Kiko's hair until she emerged into a grassy platform that formed a small cliff over more woodland. Kiko emerged soon after, using her hair as wild, spider-like legs.

"I hope you are ready to die!" Kiko threatened as Hinata settled into a gentle fist stance.

* * *

Shino and Tokeru eyed one other silently in the area where the explosion had initially gone off. In contrast to the dense forest, sunlight filtered through the clearing and the smell of burnt wood invaded their sense. This would be their battleground.

"I presume separating us was your strategy," Tokeru's discordant voice wheezed.

"We took note of how dangerous the three of you are together, being able to defeat two Jounin and a high ranking samurai is no small feat," Shino explained as insects began to emerge from his sleeve. "Alone you will not be able to combine your strengths ." Shino aimed his hand at Tokeru and his insects swarmed towards the mist ninja.

"You think you three are strong enough to defeat us individually?" Tokeru hissed as he waved his hand across his body, releasing a misty veil of green acid. Shino's bugs were covered and dissolved before making contact.

A new swarm emerged from under Shino's coat and hovered around him, awaiting a command.

Shino's voice was plain, cold and stern. "Do not underestimate Team 8 of Konoha."


	8. Toward The Sun

With her byakuagn blazing, Hinata watched Kiko attentively.

_At our current position... my opponent is at an advantage, _Hinata thought to herself, observing the 5-yard gap between them. _I have to close the-_

Hinata was snapped out of her thoughts as a barrage of chakra infused whips of raven-colored hair lashed at the Byakugan wielder. Even with the aide of her dojutsu, Hinata was only able to narrowly avoid the violent lashes of sharped hair.

After crouching and rolling to avoid two assaults from Kiko, Hinata identified an opening. She lunged forward in a chakra enhanced dash, her index and middle finger prepared to send chakra into the reanimated ninja's body.

Hinata closed in, prepared to land her first strike, suddenly Kiko's scalp exploded in a fury of new, unprecedented spikes. Instantly aware of the spiny protrusions extending from Kiko's head, Hinata dug her heel into the ground then preforming several evasive backflips. Unfortunately, the kunoichi was not done with her assault. More malleable and extensive hair began to form a encase Hinata and constrict.

Eyes closed, Hinata exhaled, her eyes flashed open as she began to her arms in long, rhythmic arcs around her body leaving behind thin sharpened lines of chakra.

**"Protective 8 trigrams: 64 palms!**" Hinata declared. In a matter of moments, the hair that attempted to capture her was in shreds. Hinata waited defensively until she fell to one knee. The spikes had managed to leave a gash on her right leg as well as cuts on her face and a puncture in her vest that would have meant death had she moved a second later.

Kiko's hair retracted to its original length.

The woman chuckled. "From my scalp, I'm able to sprout as much hair as I want in an instant, I do admit those eyes of yours grant you some impressive evasive skills," Kiko said, running a hand through her limp hair. "But you won't be able to get close without being skewered." She taunted.

_She is right_, Hinata thought. _She's capable of attacking from a distance with extended hair and if I am able to get in range she can form a defense_.

with a huff, Hinata quickly moved to the far left of Kiko, momentarily escaping her limited line of sight. After condensing chakra in her palm, she launched a compressed, chakra permeated blast of air at her target. Surely a long-ranged attack would catch her off guard.

The kunoichi didn't attempt to dodge, instead, her hair moved in front of her, creating a sturdy shield that absorbed the force the air palm. Hinata then appeared on the side of Kiko and lowered her body into a familiar stance.

"**8 trigrams: 64 palms**!" She said as her palms began to target chakra points.

"Do you not learn child!" Kiko exclaimed and before Hinata could make contact, Kiko's hair extended into spikes. After narrowly avoiding blows to the face and abdomen with an unnatural body movement granted by her flexibility and dexterity. Hinata continued to evade the spiked assault. Desperately, the leaf ninja shifted, sidestepped, and flipped away from several attacks before she was forced to fling herself over the cliff and into one of the many patches of shrubbery.

With her byakugan activated, she watched as Kiko stood at the edge above and used her hair to aimlessly lash out at random areas she assumed Hinata to be hiding. Hinata watched calmly. Waiting.

Frustration boiled in Kiko as she increased the frequency of her attacks, destroying the greenery below her.

"Why don't you stop hiding and-" Kiko was cut off by a Kunai towards her face that she blocked using a ribbon of hair. As the projectile was in the process of being deflected Kiko became aware of the smoke bomb attached to it. On cue, it exploded into a dense cloud of smoke. The world around her became dark.

Without warning a section of the smoke was pushed away by a surge of chakra, creating a miniature gaseous dome around Kiko and Hinata Hyuga, who stood boldly, crouched before Kiko in an offensive stance. Two masses of lion-shaped chakra encompassed her forearms.

Surprised Kiko began to form her defense but Hinata was faster. Hinata was in range.

"**Gentle step: Twin Lion Fist**!" Hinata announced as she moved forward in a circular motion, attacking Kiko and pushing them back into the smog. Hinata finalized her onslaught by jabbing both of her chakra engrossed palms into Kiko's abdomen.

Hinata's chakra expanded into a large luminescent orb, completely dispersing the smoke and then retracted with a snap, violently launching Kiko through several trees before she hit the ground and rolled hard into a stump.

With Hinata's chakra surging through her system Kiko found herself immobilized and her regenerative abilities were at a standstill.

Hinata limped over to her victim, she was not without her own afflictions. The gash on her leg throbbed with every move as blood poured onto her dark pant leg. there were also several minor cuts on her body but she was still able to move. Her byakugan retracted and she stumbled from the large amounts of chakra she had used.

"It became clear that the only way to beat you was by removing your vision," Hinata huffed. "Now…with the invasive chakra of my twin lion fist…you won't be able to move for some time."

Hinata held her face up toward the sun, embracing its warmth. The images of Naruto, Neji, and Kurenai came to her mind.

_Would you all…be proud_? Hinata mused before she trudged into the forest to reunite with her teammates.


	9. 2 Rules

Behind his shades, Shino watched plainly as his parasitic insects surrounded Tokeru then moments later melted away into nothingness after coming into contact with his acidic mist.

"This isn't nearly enough to take me down." Tokeru taunted. At that moment he noticed a shadow being cast above him. Shino directed a black, jittering mass of insects over Tokeru's head. All at once, the mass descended upon Tokeru, coving his entire form.

Shino analyzed silently as his bugs began to dissolve on Tokeru's skin.

"I was sure to be clear of any mist, how exactly did you destroy my insects?" Shino inquired.

As the last of the insects dissolved Tokeru began to talk. "All of my bodily functions are acidic," Tokeru stated. "From my breath to my sweat, if it comes from me, it can melt you away. There is no way you can win"

B_ecause his acid is leaving no survivors amongst my beetles they do not have the chance to acquire an immunity via evolution, the only option I can think of is_-, Shino was pulled out of his thoughts as a misty green hand lunged for his face. Taking advantage of years of training with his taijutsu favoring teammates Shino ducked under the attack and rolled to safety.

As he gathered himself Shino's attention was drawn to a cloud of acid floating toward him.

"**Hidden Jutsu: Beetle tornado**," Shino said, suddenly a spinning cylinder of beetles formed between him and the cloud. In seconds both attacks dissipated

As the attacks canceled one another out Shino pointed both arms at Tokeru then recited, "Hidden Jutsu: Beetle sphere." Two large orbs formed from his sleeves and began to move toward Tokeru.

Tokeru watched apathetically as the insect comprised sphere's approached sluggishly until they blocked his view of Shino.

"Out of my way!" The mist ninja hissed before spitting out a thin sheet of acid that covered both spheres, dissolving the attack and revealing that Shino had fleed from the battle.

"I won't let you get away coward! after I kill you I'm going to melt the faces off your friends!" Tokeru shouted into the timber. He then performed a number of hand signs.

"Acid Style: Acid poltergeist jutsu," Tokeru thought, prompting acid to billow out of his mouth until the stream formed four misty clones of himself.

After forming the silhouettes dashed into the trees in pursuit of Shino.

Shino was already a distance away but could see the clones moving through the trees.

_This jutsu is faster than most of his usual techniques_, Shino thought to himself as he jumped to avoid a collision with one of the clones. He watched as it hit and burned straight through a tree.

"Hmm," Shino said, observing the attack.

A second clone rushed Shino who countered with a swarm of beetles that were instantly destroyed. Shino was forced to jump upward toward the canopy to evade the attack.

_It __seems __like __these __clones __don't lose much __mass when they burn through objects, unlike his usual jutsu. This will require a great effort to dispose__ o_f, Shino thought as he flung himself to the forest floor to narrowly avoid two more collisions.

After landing, the clones gathered in front of Shino, preparing to lunge.

Shino extended his arms and without warning, a horde of beetles swarmed from his sleeves, collar, and the hem of his coat. In a matter of seconds, the forest was filled with Shino's entire colony, reducing visibility to zero.

Not giving the clones any time to react Shino formed a tight fist and light filtered back into the woods as the beetles all converged in on one point forming a violently trashing mass of darkness around the clones.

Shino watched as the size of the horde decreased, each of his bugs sacrificing themselves to do away with his current threat. A moment passed and the sound of buzzing and fluttering wing died leaving a slightly empty feeling in his chest but Shino was pleased to see his foes had been terminated.

The Aburame held his index finger to eye level where a queen beetle, no larger than his fingernail, rested. She burrowed beneath his skin and into his body where she would begin to repopulate. He would be without his clan's infamous weapon and allies for the next couple of hours.

Shino continued his retreat once Tokeru came into view from a distance. After passing a wall of trees that enclosed a small, shaded, field, Shino stopped and waited for his opponent who entered shortly after.

"Tired of running huh?" Tokeru asked as his hands began to emit a familiar green mist. As he awaited a response a single flying insect drifted into his view.

Tokeru then became aware of the bugs lazily floating around the field.

"Lampyridae, or a name more familiar to you, fireflies, are of the beetle family and mate quite easily with my Kikaichu," Shino stated plainly. His hands tucked deep in his pockets.

"You assumed I was running, I was actually giving these two species time to breed with one another." As he spoke, one of the fireflies landed on Shino's cheek.

"Your bugs can mate with a horse for all I care it won't be enough to penetrate my acid," Tokeru snapped.

"You misunderstand my intent," Shino said as the multitude of insects began to harmlessly flicker.

"My goal is not to penetrate your defense, not anymore."

Tokeru swatted at the fireflies who made a great effort to stay out of his striking range.

"Some things you should remember…" Shino began, hands still resting in his pockets.

Tokeru began to charge toward Shino, ignoring the presence of the drifting insects.

"Number one, never underestimate the Aburame clan, as we will never underestimate you."

Tokeru was quickly filling the distance between them.

"Number two, you are to never threaten the lives of my friends again," Shino said coldly.

Suddenly, with Tokeru inches away from him, the fireflies began to glow in unison. With a low hum, the dimly lit grove was flooded with white blinding light.

Moments passed and the and the light receded to each individual insect. Shino stood unmoved in front of Tokeru who stood with his head hung and mouth open.

"Something akin to genjutsu, in modestly lit areas the light of these bugs is capable of temporarily short-circuiting the brain, essentially you are brain dead for the next few minutes," Shino said to his lifeless opponent. "Your brain can't even process the danger to make you recover."

Shino held out his hand and allowed a few of the firefly hybrids to land on his hand before they took to the air again.

"I must be going now but my new friends are going to stay here with you. When the effects of the attack ware off, they will simply perform another flash." Shino said.

"Now I need to find Kiba and Hinata," Shino murmured as he leaped into the trees.


End file.
